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My grandmother Nana turned 90 this month — what an incredible milestone in life! We packed up what seemed like everything in our house to travel with the bebe down to Jacksonville, FL last weekend for her big celebration.

To be honest, I’d been stressed about this trip for weeks. Taking a barely one month old baby on a 5 hour drive out of state did not seem like the most fun idea, especially considering she’d never spent more than an hour in her car seat. But we were pleasantly surprised at how well she traveled! She slept almost the entire trip down, and she was pretty easy the entire weekend. Maybe everyone was right by saying this really is a good age to travel with. 🙂 My cousin Alli and her family were gracious enough to host us at their home so we didn’t have to be cooped up in a hotel room with a newborn, and it made our trip so much better. She even had mints on our pillows… Hotel Vogt is the 5 star!

We had the best time visiting with all of my mom’s family, and I’m so happy that all of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and other extended relatives got to meet Leighton so early in her little life. Most importantly, our grandmother Nana got to hold and love on her newest great granddaughter! It was a sweet, lovely sight.

Aside from visiting with family, we spent some time down in Avondale, which is the cutest area of boutiques and restaurants. We had a fantastic brunch at Brick Restaurant, and mama got a long-awaited mimosa! After helping with some birthday party setup, we headed back to Avondale for some football watching, beer drinking, and hot pretzel eating at the nicest Mellow Mushroom I’ve ever seen.

Saturday night, we celebrated Nana’s 90th birthday with a big party at my aunt and uncle’s home, which used to belong to my grandparents. I love going back to this house because it brings back so many great childhood memories – and it’s a fantastic place for parties! Nana was surrounded by not only all of her family, but many of her lifelong friends, which was really neat to see. We dined on Cuban food outside under strings of lights and colorful lanterns, watched college football (not happy about that Georgia game), and watched a sweet slideshow documenting Nana’s wonderful life. It was a perfect celebration for our favorite Nana!

When I found out my friend Shannon was pregnant last fall, I immediately started thinking about a baby shower. I mean, by now, we all know that planning is my forte (and I love a good party), so that shouldn’t be surprising. A couple of our friends got together to host a shower for her in March (last weekend), and it was such a lovely day at Meredith’s beautiful home!

Shannon is such a sweet, caring friend, and we had the best time preparing/crafting/shopping for her special day. I’m so excited to meet baby Biggs when he arrives in May! He’s already very loved, and I’m really looking forward to our little ones growing up together!

Here are some highlights from the shower, including some source links for you fellow party planners. Enjoy!

Last weekend we traveled to the great city of New Orleans to celebrate my dear friend Meg and her love Jason at their wedding. As I probably mentioned in the post about Meg’s bachelorette trip, she was one of the very first friends I made at UGA, and we have made so many memories together. I had the pleasure of meeting Jason right after college when we visited Meg in Colorado Springs, where she’d taken a job. Jason worked with Meg, but lived in Boulder, so we convinced her that we should go up for the night to visit this guy she told us about… and the rest is history!

Meg is from New Orleans and we visited her hometown several times throughout college. It may sometimes get a bad rap, but I love it for the culture and beautiful architecture and great food and lively music. We stayed at the Bienville House Hotel in the French Quarter for the weekend, and we were able to walk almost everywhere we needed to go. The Bienville is a historic boutique hotel with one of the tiniest elevators I’ve ever been in, but it also has surprisingly large rooms. We had a view of the fire station across the street, so I felt quite safe. 🙂

Craig, our friend Karen, and I arrived Thursday afternoon and spent the evening wandering the streets of the Quarter, sampling the obligatory frozen daiquiris, and eating Mexican food with a funny little dancing waiter until we were able to meet up with a couple other college friends who live there.

The Rex Room — one of the most gorgeous rooms I’ve ever been in! The walls are lined with photos and memorabilia from the Rex crew, which I believe is the largest Mardi Gras crew. How perfect is this for a girly luncheon?

The bride and her Tri Delta ladies::

Meg and all of her bridesmaids::

Meg and her beautiful mom and sisters::

Rehearsal at the Academy of the Sacred Heart::

Rehearsal Dinner/Cocktail Party venue in the Quarter. The lighting in the courtyard was romantic, and the house itself was so beautiful. It was the perfect venue for all of Meg and Jason’s wedding party, family, and out-of-town guests to gather and celebrate before their big day!